Israeli Air Strike Kills 5 Palestinians in Gaza

Israel is pushing ahead with its campaign against Palestinian rocket attacks, with a series of air strikes Monday that killed at least five Palestinians.

In the deadliest attack, an air strike on a car killed at least four Islamic Jihad militants in the northern Gaza Strip.

On Sunday, Palestinian officials said an Israeli air strike on the Gaza City home of a Hamas lawmaker killed eight people. The attack outraged Hamas, which promised revenge.

Israel launched the attack hours after its security Cabinet said it would intensify operations in Gaza to stop Palestinian militants from firing rockets into Israel. Cabinet ministers threatened to target Hamas leaders.

Nearly 40 Palestinians have been killed since Israel began its campaign last week.

European Union Foreign Policy chief Javier Solana has left on a visit to the Middle East to urge an end to the violence.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.

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